Biryani Day | A Very Non-Traditional Approach To This Lovely Dish

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Biryani On Special Occasions

Having worked with a lot of Indian colleagues before, I remember this very tasty dish was the most requested whenever we would have celebrations in the office. It was a big dilemma for me because though I love Biryani, the Head Office management actually did not allow us to cater this on special office celebrations (e.g. hitting that $$ sales milestone) because it tended to be messy and yeah, the spice aroma lingered for a very long time. We don't want clients stepping into the office thinking if they got lost in a restaurant, right? Another thing was the carpet. My boss went ballistic when he saw stains on the carpet. Haha.

Anyway, I always (most of the time) find a way to get myself through for approvals. Hmmm, a $1M sales mark is a good reason, right? LOL.

During these special times, I get help from my Indian colleagues on where to order the best biryani. Our favorite? Hyderabadi Biryani!

Hyderabadi biryani is one of India's most famous biryanis; some say biryani is synonymous with Hyderabad [Source]

Biryani

Biryani, if not yet obvious, originated in India. It is a rice meal of mixed Indian spices and protein. It could be chicken, fish, beef, lamb, or mutton. Of course, it can also be prepared in full vegetarian option.

Okay, after everything that's been said, I guess what I really just wanted to say is, "I really miss biryani!"

On to the kitchen experiment!

Disclaimer: Dead Indian Friends, I love you and I love your food, but please excuse me if I had to make "alterations" to the recipe and diverted from authentic. Simply, I had to make do with what I had.

It's been a while since I've had Biryani, and the inspiration for me to try cooking this dish was really brought about by the rice we now have at home. Though jasmine, it was not really sticky. It's more of the type that disintegrates and you'd make fried rice with.

Traditionally, biryani is prepared with basmati rice. Basmati is white, elongated rice grain, also widely produced in India. So with my rice alone, I knew I'd not get an authentic hit on my would-be biryani.

Ingredients

Anyway, I still proceeded with the plan. I found this video, aptly titled, "SIMPLE CHICKEN BIRYANI FOR BEGINNERS". I quickly scanned the ingredients required to pull off the dish. It called for ready-made biryani masala and that's what sold me.

Biryani : Two-Way

I planned to make two options - fish and chicken. The original recipe of course had the chicken cooked with the sauce. But since I would be making two batches, I cooked the sauce on its own, then just later on added the chicken on one portion and the fried fish on the rest.

Cooking the Sauce

Ingredients:

  • 3 medium-sized Onions, sliced
  • Ginger Garlic paste- 1 tbsp
  • 3 medium Tomatoes, sliced
  • 1 cup plain yogurt
  • Ready-made Biryani Masala- 5 tbsp

The following were recommended ingredients that I did not add:

  • Green Chillies, slit- 6 numbers >> I tasted and it was already too spicy for our preference
  • Coriander leaves, chopped- 1 cup >> I failed to buy :(
  • Mint leaves, chopped- 1 cup >> I added just a few

Method

  • Mash garlic and ginger to make a paste.
  • Heat oil in pan, add onions and cook until caramelized.
  • Add tomatoes and cook until soft.
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  • Add the garlic paste. Continue to cook on medium heat.
  • Add the masala spice and mix well.
  • Add the yogurt and let it simmer for at least 10 minutes.
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  • Divide the sauce and add the fried fish and chicken to each batch. Let simmer for additional 5 minutes.

Cooking the Rice

Again, here is where I've gone rogue. My jasmine rice was already cooked. Traditional biryani rice requires it to be cooked with spices.

Here are the spices meant to be added while cooking the rice.

  • Shahjeera (caraway seeds) - 1/2 tsp
  • Green cardamom - 4
  • Cloves - 4
  • Cinnamon- 2 pieces
  • Salt- 2 1/2 tablespoon
  • Water to boil the rice- around 2.5 litres
  • Mint leaves - around 10- 15 leaves

Expectedly, I did not get the desired flavor because I didn't have caraway seeds, cloves, and cinnamon sticks. Instead, I added cinnamon powder (crucify me now! 🙈), cardamom, and mint to the boiling water.

Then I added this "concoction" to my already-cooked rice and just let it dry over low heat.

Anyway, once the rice was ready, I also divided it into two portions - one for the chicken, and the other for the fish. Cook for a few more minutes then mix.

This is "Yellow Rice".

My kids call chicken curry, yellow rice simply because the curry gives the rice a distinct yellow color. And oh, they love chicken curry, as they do biryani! They have gone used to eating biryani because for a few years in our old apartment, we regularly had a share of biryani from our Indian neighbors during Ramadan. They'd knock on our door and there, a big pot of biryani - almost daily.

Anyway, when I served them the "biryani", they said it was "yellow rice". LOL. Few scoops into lunch, they already notice the difference (thank God!) and concurred that it was indeed biryani! Yey!

The Verdict

As mentioned above, I did not bother to add chillis when cooking, but the dish was still very spicy. The heat could easily be mellowed down by yogurt though.

If not for the bland rice, it would have been very close to the biryani we got used to.

Two days later, my kids were still asking for the biryani, which meant that they liked it. Wohhoo!

Will I still cook it again? Definitely yes. I will, by then, make sure that I will have all the ingredients/spices required to cook the dish. Who knows, I might just try going full authentic-style and not use ready mix masala? 😜

Of course, when that happens, I will definitely share my experience to this lovely community!

❤️Arlyn



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